Keeping Babies
by Kyizi
Summary: Harry, Ginny, Keeping Babies with Snape? Challenge fic and yes, it's as strange as it sounds! ;p
1. Keeping Babies

**Keeping Babies**

**_By Kyizi_**

****

**_Disclaimer:_**_ They ain't mine, the story is :)_

**_Rating:_**_ PG-13 for innuendo_

**_Summary:_**_ Sequel to my Towerstock entry, "Stare Out". The challenge comes from my loveable fiend (Yes the r was missed out on purpose! ;p ), Heliona. And I have to say that some of these are pretty evil!_

The challenge was as follows… 

_Include all of the following:_

~ _Snape doing the can-can._

~ _The dialogue: "What's it feel like?"_

_"Like fireworks exploding inside your body, but better."_

~ _All the male students wandering about shirtless (and I mean for "real" not in some dirty-minded person's dream! *not like us, of coures, we're allowed to do that all the time*****)_

~ _Oliver Wood turning up. (I had to have him in at some point, didn't I?)_

~ _A baby animal (human or otherwise)_

~ _The dialogue: "What were you two doing?"_

_"Well, um, we were investigating the, uh, physical effects of the, um, Tickling Charm. Yeah, that's it, the Tickling Charm."_

~ _The twins proposing to Angelina and Alicia/Katie (whichever one you want.)_

~ _Someone pretending to be a frog, hopping about yelling "Ribbit!"_

~ _Chocolate body paint_

~ _A moonlit broom ride_

_…I have to include all of that? …this is gonna be an epic!_

**_Dedication:_**_ To my luvly beta Heliona and to Loriel, just 'cause both of you are always keeping my on my toes!_

**_Feedback:_**_ Always appreciated_

**_E-mail:_**_ kyizi@hotmail.com _

~x~x~x~x~x~

"What's that?"

  
"What's what?"

"That."

"What, this?"

"Yes, that!"

"Nothing."

"It's not nothing." Pause. "Why does it come with a brush?"

"To apply it."

"Apply it where? …Actually, I don't want to know." 

"Why, Harry, I do believe you're blushing."

"Shut up, Gin."

Ron rolled his eyes and looked up from his collector cards, only to frown at his sister. "Gin, what _is_ that?"

Ginny groaned, "If you _must_ know, it's chocolate body paint. And, my dear, Ronald, if you want to know the many various ways it can be applied, I'm sure that Hermione can help you there!"

Ron's ears turned pink as he suddenly became very interested in his cards. Hermione giggled and shook her head at Ginny, but Harry was transfixed on her lips.

"What?"

"You, eh, you have a big smudge of, eh, chocolate on your lips."

"Oh!" Ginny giggled and ducked her head away from him. He smiled and leaned closer, picking up the jar in front of her. After a moment he laughed. 

"What?"

"Gin, did you by any chance get this from your brothers?"

"Why?" she asked, shying away from the jar as if she was afraid it would suddenly sprout fangs.

"You didn't read the small print, did you?"

"Oh, for goodness sakes, Harry, what didn't I see?"

"I think your brothers may have been worried you'd use this for, eh, well, that someone else would, eh…"

 "You mean that I might ask you to apply it?" she asked a little too innocently. 

Harry spluttered for a few minutes, his face turning beetroot, before he calmed enough to talk. "Well, yes. And, well, they seem to have added a little…er, extra."

"What?" Ginny grabbed the jar from him and hurriedly read the label. "On no!" She turned to glare at him. "This is _not_ funny, Harry Potter. We have 'Keeping Babies' with Professor Snape in about twenty minutes and he's already angry at us for that dirty nappy attacking Malfoy yesterday. The last thing I need are Fillots in my stomach!" __

Hermione frowned, "I thought Fred and George would want you to stay away from Harry, not chase him."

"What do you mean?" Fred asked coming up behind them. 

"That was exactly the plan," George continued, the two of them smiling sweetly at Ginny.

Hermione tried to control her smile. "I, eh, did you two research Fillots at all?"

"Of course we did. They make you laugh uncontrollably whenever you want to, er, get close to someone."

"No, that's a Filwot," Hermione said, stressing the "w". The entire Weasley family frowned, the news obviously contradicting what they thought they knew. "A Fillot is, well, an aphrodisiac."

"WHAT?" 

Hermione jumped as the male Weasleys fumed. Ginny, on the other hand, began to laugh hysterically whilst Harry simply blushed.__

"It, well, it stimulates you. Whenever you're near the object of your affection, it multiplies your reactions."

"Is there an antidote?" George asked frantically.

Hermione cringed, awaiting their reaction. "No. Fillots take their time to seep through the skin and only then will the effects wear off."

"How long does it take?" Ron asked, eyeing up Ginny to see if any effect had begun to take place.

"Well it depends on the amount ingested and the potency." The twins glanced at the almost empty jar and cringed. Harry gulped. "It also depends on the reaction. If the recipient is, well, enjoying it, the experience can be just as pleasurable for the Fillot, so they, er, take their time."

"Ginny, go to your room. You are not to leave it for the next week."

"Well…" All eyes turned to Hermione. She smiled stiffly, "Fillots only leave the system when they've done their job." 

Whatever the twins were about to say was cut off by the strong voice of their old Quidditch Captain, which cut into the conversation, "Right, everyone, time to head down to the dungeon."

"Oh no," Ron groaned.

Fred looked at Ginny. "You can't go to Snape's classroom like this!"

"And _especially_ not with him!" George added, pointing at Harry. 

Harry, however, was a little preoccupied with the way Ginny was staring at him. She was smirking and he wasn't sure he liked the mischievous look in her eyes. The hand making it's way up his thigh only added to the potential nuclear explosion that was sure to happen were her brothers to notice. Pulling her hand into his own and standing up, he ignored her glare and pulled her towards the portrait hole.

"Hey! You're not taking her to class!" There was suddenly a wall of Weasleys before him.

"Look," Oliver said, cutting in, "I don't know what you lot are playing at, but the last thing you need is to have Snape hate you even more. He might decide to take Quidditch privileges from you and that's the last thing you want." __

Harry turned to Oliver and frowned, "They've already done that. We have to play American Football instead."

Oliver rolled his eyes. "Yes, I do realise that, Harry, that is, after all, what I'm here to teach you all."

"So, how did you learn to play?" Harry asked, glancing nervously at the twins, hoping he had successfully changed the subject. 

"American Football is a wonderful way to keep you in shape for Quidditch, why else do you think I learned to play?" He frowned. "But I should hope you're practicing for next year all the same. And you don't want Snape to stop you. Now will you lot get a move on?"

George frowned. "No funny business," he said stonily. Although for once, it was aimed at Ginny rather than Harry.

"Oh, so you two finally got together?" Oliver asked, patting Harry on the back. Harry turned pink, feeling as if it were becoming a permanent feature. "You're braver than I thought. Watch out for the brothers, I'm sure they bite." Oliver winked and walked to the exit.

"We, er we're not…" Harry faltered and sighed. Tugging at Ginny's hand he headed towards Snape's classroom, trying not to notice that Ginny was rubbing herself rather effectively against him. He dared a glance behind him to see if her brothers were glaring at him…they were.

Just as they were turning the corner to their destination, Neville hopped past them on all fours yelling; "Ribbit!" He turned, stopped for a moment in front of them and his chin seemed to swell momentarily before he began to hop again, yelling, "Ribbit-HELP-ribbit, ribbit!"

"Malfoy." They groaned in unison. 

Hermione followed him down the corridor and returned a few moments later with a blushing Neville. "Lavender won't come near me now, she's already tried to swap me with Dean about ten times."

"Don't worry, Neville," Fred said, laying an arm about him.

George smiled and placed an arm on his other shoulder, "We have just the thing…"

"Hurry up! Move it, get inside, all of you."  The small group moved apart as Snape made his way between them and into the classroom. He looked as surly as ever and scowled at Fred and George as they took their places by Angelina and Hermione.

"Now," Snape started, "after the incident yesterday," his head turned sharply in Harry and Ginny's direction and Harry would have cared if he hadn't been too busy rescuing his legs from Ginny's wandering hands. "I have decided to make things a little more…interesting." His smile was none too reassuring. It was obvious it would be interesting for him and hell for the students. "You will, each of you, receive a 'child' that you are to care for in your couples. You must arrange a timetable for your other classes and you must feed and clothe it, you will each be given an income and you must use it wisely. Remember the OWLs are approaching."

From the smirk on Snape's face, the entire class knew that this wasn't going to be easy…in fact, they knew that this was as difficult as it sounded and that it was Snape's class made it all the worse.

"Any questions?" No hands were raised, although Neville's trembled a little. "Good. Your 'children' will be given out this afternoon. You are to collect them in the main hall after your last class."

Suddenly Neville sneezed, but his hands didn't react quickly enough and the force caused him to hit his head off the desk. His left hand that clutched his wand shot out in front of him, as he sneezed again a beam of magic shooting straight in front of him.

_~x~x~x~x~x~_

There was a stunned silence as everyone made their way to the changing rooms on the Quidditch/Football pitch. No one dared to speak for fear of ruining the moment they were each replaying. It was a sacred moment, something they would cherish for a long time to come, possibly even the rest of their lives.

"Who would have thought that his legs went that high?"

"I was more impressed by the balance he displayed."

"No, it was the dress and makeup that did it."

"That and the singing."

Pause.

"I'm more surprised that he knew all the steps."

"Who would have thought? Snape doing the Can-Can."

"Yeah."

"Virginia Weasley, keep those hands to yourself!"

_~x~x~x~x~x~_

Ginny tiptoed round the corner, making sure that no one was following her. She had lost Hermione a few minutes ago. After American Football, where she had managed to successfully tackle Harry about ten times, she was feeling frustrated that her brothers were being too overprotective. After all, it was their fault that she was acting instead of just thinking…and she rather liked it.

Spotting her destination straight ahead, she grinned and quickened her pace, checking once again that she was alone. She listened through the door for a moment, trying to place everyone. After hearing a few snippets of conversation, she began to wonder at the sanity of what she was doing, but before she could think again, the door was suddenly pulled away from her and she fell onto the floor.

"Ginny!"

She stood up, noting that she, unusually, wasn't blushing. She smiled and took a quick look at the shirtless men wandering around the room before her eyes rested on Harry. Her grin widened before her three brothers hauled her from the room.

"What did you think you were doing?" Ron asked incredulously.

"What?"

"Don't try that innocent act with us, Ginny," Fred continued. 

"You're making a fool of yourself."

She turned to George, her eyes flaming. "Yes, and its all your fault!"

"We know, and we're sorry. We promise we're looking at some way to sort it."

"We already know a way to sort it." Her brothers shook their heads and she reined in her anger, knowing that wasn't the way to go about it. "Just let me talk to him. You know as well as I do that Harry would _never_ take advantage of me."

Bringing Harry's credibility into the conversation was obviously having an effect. Her brothers exchanged a look and turned back to her, looking resigned. "Okay. But if he so much as _looks_ at you the wrong way, we're stringing him to the nearest Bludger."

"Okay." Ginny smiled sweetly and turned to head back to her own changing rooms. "Oh and tell the guys thanks for the show." She winked through the open door at Harry, laughing as he quickly put on a shirt and rolling her eyes at Dean and Seamus flexing their 'muscles'. Her brothers entered the changing room again, quickly shutting the door. __

_~x~x~x~x~x~_

Harry pulled at his collar again. Ginny was trying to restrain herself, he could tell and he wasn't sure why. Her brothers had given him filthy looks after they returned from removing her from the male changing rooms, but hadn't said anything else. 

"So, what do you think the 'babies' will be?" Ginny asked, trying to force herself not to run her hand up Harry's arm.

"Knowing Snape? Probably baby alligators."

Ginny laughed and her hands moved of their own accord. She turned to Harry and smiled. "I'm sorry."

"It's-it's okay."

She sniggered. "Yes and that's why you're voice is breaking…again."

Harry mock glared at her and shook his head. "I just don't know what to do."

"Well, we can talk about it tonight."

"Your brothers will kill me if I'm anywhere near you out of class. You saw them at lunch."

"We've had words, and they'll take our baby, whatever that may be and we can spend some time talking."

"They agreed to look after our child?"

Ginny smiled deviously. "They will."

"Attention please." The students turned to face the front of the room where Professor McGonagall stood next to Professors Snape and Flitwick.

"The assignment that Professor Snape detailed to you earlier will be for credit in both of our classes. Instead of attending life classes each day, you will attend every second day. You are to spend the free time with your children. When you attend class, you will be assessed on how well you are taking care of the children."

"Kids? We gots kids?" Fred and George turned to each other in mock horror.

"Angelina, make a honest man outta me, would ya?"

"Katie, would you do me the honour?" Professor Flitwick and the rest of the Gryffindors laughed along with the girls, even Professor McGonagall seemed amused, no one bothered to look at Snape or indeed any of the Slytherins. 

"Sorry, honey," Katie said, feigning tears, "but I'm married to your brother."

"Oh, that's right, Hermione, darling…"

"Gentlemen, enough." McGonagall smiled tightly as they took their seats again. "Besides," she continued, "the idea of this project is that you are to pretend you're already married."

"Hermione, darling, I knew you wouldn't turn me down." George grabbed Hermione's hand as she blushed.

"Wait a minute, I don't remember getting a honeymoon!" Fred said in mock outrage. 

"Don't worry, honey," Angelina said, smiling sweetly, "I was there and neither do I."

The Gryffindors laughed as the Slytherins tried not to. "I think that's enough." Professor McGonagall nodded in their direction and the twins smiled, Fred trying to control his blushing. "Now, the children you will be caring for will be _Dreambabies_." There was a slight gasp throughout the room and Harry turned to Ginny, confused.

"For those who are unaware, _Dreambabies_ are physical, magical manifestations of the children that a couple have the potential to parent. The children will be circumstance to events that are perceived at that moment in time. A couple may indeed have the children the _Dreambabies_ show to them, they may not. Please note that _Dreambabies_ react in the same way as normal children would, but, although I wouldn't advise you try anything, they cannot be harmed for real. They will simply take note of any incidents so that we can read them later. Are there any questions?"__

Harry sat in a stunned silence. He was going to be taking care of a child that he and Ginny would have in the future. He stopped himself. _Would have_. He hadn't thought it was possible that he had any idea of a future, that he had any thoughts of what he wanted, but he just had. He wanted Ginny. He turned to look at her and noticed that she was squirming a little in her seat. Could she be thinking the same thing that he was? Was it possible that she wanted him in her future?

"Pay attention." Harry shook out of his thoughts and turned to Professor Snape. "_Dreambabies_ are created from a mixture of potions, transfiguration and charms. Pay attention to the way the three work together and be aware that you will be tested on this at some point."

"Now, I'm going to run through the register as the female surname. When your name is called, you and your partner are to come to the front of the room. Yes, Miss Brown?"

"May I be excused, please?" All eyes turned to Lavender and no one could miss the tears in her eyes. McGonagall nodded and she ran from the room leaving Neville and the rest of the class staring after her in confusion.

"When she returns, no one is to ask any questions of Miss Brown, is that understood?" The class nodded and she turned to Parvati, "Miss Patil, would you follow Miss Brown and check on her."

"Yes, Miss."

"What was that all about, do you think?" Ron asked as the first Slytherin couple went up to the front of the room.

Hermione shook her head but Ginny looked down. "What is it?" Harry asked softly.

"Well, I've done some reading on _Dreambabies,"_ she said, her ears turning pink, "And, well…they only work if the people involved are capable of having children."

"You mean…?"

Ginny nodded at Hermione. "Do you remember how she had bandages on her stomach after her family were attacked last summer…I don't think Lavender can have children."

No one spoke, but most of the Gryffindor seniors had been listening in and when Lavender returned with Parvati, they rallied round her. The Slytherins began to snigger as she took her seat and Neville surprised them all by drawing his wand at Malfoy under the table before he even had the chance to open his mouth.

Lavender smiled at Neville and placed a hand on his arm, realising that her classmates had come to a conclusion about her situation. She took a deep breath and turned to the front of the room, waiting till she was called, trying to think of what she could say. 

Ginny frowned, hating to see Lavender in the situation she was. She turned to Hermione and noticed that the older girl seemed to be working on a plan; she was biting her lip, a sign that Ginny knew well.

"Brown, Lavender and Longbottom, Neville." 

Lavender stood and shook her head as Professor McGonagall made a move to speak. She walked to the front of the class and prepared to speak when Hermione stood up, her chair scraping across the floor, cutting into the silence.

"Professor, may Itake a closer look, I'd like to see exactly how the transfiguration is linked into this."

Snape opened his mouth to speak, but Professor McGonagall replied quicker, "Of course you may, Miss Granger."

The entire room watched Hermione as she moved to the front of the class. She took a position that cut off the Slytherins' view and just as Lavender prepared to place her finger next to Neville's in the potion, Hermione beat her to it. A slight touch was made before she stood back.

"Oh, I see. Thank you, Professor." Hermione nodded at Lavender who had tears in her eyes and made her way back to her seat.

"That was really nice of you, Hermione," Ginny said, speaking for everyone. Hermione shrugged, but they could tell she was simply grateful she could help.

Lavender returned to her desk carrying a small bundle in her arms, closely followed by Neville. "Thank you," she whispered as she passed, taking her seat at the adjacent desk.

"Wait a minute," Ron frowned. "Did you just have a baby with _Neville_?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Considering I'm about to have one with your brother, that should be the least of your worries."

_~x~x~x~x~x~_

"I can't believe this would be our child," Angelina said softly as Fred pulled a face at the child in his arms.

Harry smiled but refused to take his eyes off the little girl he was holding. He was a father…or he would be in the future, perhaps. The whole idea confused him, but he didn't really care. He turned to Ginny and smiled as she cooed at the little girl she was cradling.

"I _still_ can't believe you had twins," Ron scowled, giving Harry a look that would have killed him if it could have.

"Yeah, what was that about Harry never taking advantage, Gin?" George smirked and Fred laughed. Harry simply blushed, ignoring that Ron still looked angry.

"Honestly, Ron," Hermione admonished. "It's a project. If it were real, you'd be an uncle to this beautiful little boy."

Harry smiled as he heard Ron mutter something that sounded like he rather be the father and turned to look at Ginny. She was giggling as she played with their other daughter and Harry had never seen her look more beautiful.

"So do we name them?" George asked, tickling his 'son'.

"Of course we do."

"Later," Ginny said, standing up. She turned to George and handed him the child in her arms and approached Harry. After handing over their other daughter to Angelina, she took his hand and turned to the others, all of whom looked confused. 

"Harry and I are going for a walk. Look after our kids or you will regret it." Before anyone could say a word, they walked out of the portrait hole.

"You know they'll likely send someone after us," Harry stated, smiling as Ginny ran down the corridor, pulling him with her. They ran outside into the grounds and onto the Quidditch field.

She stopped and turned, almost causing him to bang into her. "Then let's go away,"

He frowned. "What?" he asked breathlessly.

She rolled her eyes and smiled at him, "Haven't you learned anything, Harry Potter?" She laughed at his expression and held her hand out. "_Accio,_ _Firebolt_!" After a few moments, Harry's broomstick came flying through the air and landed in Ginny's outstretched hand.

"Mr Potter, would you fly me to the stars?" she asked softly, pulling herself flush against him.

He stared into her eyes. "Forever."

Ginny's eyes widened at the look he was giving her. They stood still for a moment before Harry took his broomstick and settled onto it, pulling her into a position sitting sideways, almost on his lap. Before she could adjust herself to sitting normally, the broom took off.

"Harry, I'll fall!"

"I wouldn't let you."  She smiled at him and settled against him, leaning her head on his shoulder. They flew in silence, enjoying the fresh air, staring at the stars dotted before them and the moon lighting their path through the stars.

"Gin?"

"What?"

"Can you…do you feel them inside you?"

"If you mean the babies, Harry, then no. Do we need to talk about the birds and the bees?"

"Ginny, I'm serious. The Fillots…do you feel them?"

"Only when I'm with you."

Harry gulped a little. "What's it feel like?"

"Like fireworks exploding inside your body, but better." __

There was a pause. "The Fillots make you feel that?" he asked as he gently set the broom down by the lake.

"No," she replied turning to face him, "you make me feel like that."

Harry looked at her, the moonlight dancing on her hair like flames in a fire. He stared at her, not saying anything, just taking it all in. After a moment, he leaned towards her, a slight smile on his lips as he heard her gasp. He wasn't sure of much, only that he wanted to kiss her. So he did.

~x~x~x~x~x~

"I don't care what you say, Hermione, I'm going to look for them."

"Ron, calm down."

"Hey, you're my wife, you should be telling me to calm down." 

"You're not wound up," Hermione stated.

  
"Yeah," Ron said suspiciously, turning to George, "why aren't you wound up?"

Fred and George exchanged a smile. "You want to tell them or should I?"

"Oh, you tell."

"No, you."

"Let's tell together." The twins turned to their small and utterly confused group of friends. "We found and administered an antidote to Ginny earlier on."

"You did?" Hermione asked, surprised.

  
"Well, we made an antidote." George pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Hermione.

After reading it over a few times, she smiled. "This is really good. It seems to be a sound principle, it should have worked." She handed the paper back to George. "You should hand that into the Ministry, I think they'd pay you well for it."

"I think people would pay us better for it if we were the only ones that sold it," Fred said, grinning.

Before Hermione could comment, the portrait hole opened and Harry and Ginny entered, holding hands. Her brothers raised their eyebrows, but from the look Ginny sent them, they remained silent…for a moment at least.

"You're looking a little flushed there, Harry."

"You too, Gin."

Harry placed his arm tight around Ginny's waist, placing her between him and her advancing brother. Ginny giggled.

Ron glared at Harry, arms folded. "What were you two doing?"

"Well, um, we were investigating the, uh, physical effects of the, um, Tickling Charm. Yeah, that's it, the Tickling Charm."

Ginny, Hermione, Angelina and Katie stifled their laughter as the Weasleys advanced on Harry. Rolling her eyes, Katie stood up and walked over to Ron.

"Ronald, dear, your son is wriggling, I think he wants his father."

Ron's eyes widened as he looked at Katie. "Eh…erm…yeah, well…yeah." He cleared his throat and cautiously took the child from her arms, failing to notice that she was trying not to laugh at his obvious discomfort.

"Oh, Ronald, you're so shy, I don't remember you like this on our honeymoon."

Harry laughed as he picked up one of his daughters, and sat on the couch. "It's just as well that's not a real child," he said as Ginny brought their other daughter with her and sat next to him.

"Yeah," she agreed, "I don't think the floor works as a good hat for a real child."

Harry laughed again and placed his free arm around Ginny's shoulder, oblivious to anything but her. He looked at the two children in their arms and almost wished it were for real, that he was at the end of his journey. Placing a kiss to her forehead he grinned as she smiled up at him. No, he thought, he'd much rather wait and see what would happen along the way.

~x~x~x~x~x~

Well? Any good? Sorry it got a bitty serious in the middle there and very sappy at the end. I have a small outtake between Lavender and Hermione that I felt was out of place in this, as it just made the whole thing a little too serious. It's called "Keeping Babies: I'd Be Honoured"

I know it got sappy and I know there is room for another sequel, but I think I'll wait and see what's wanted before I bother ;)

Feedback is a precious gift


	2. "I'd Be Honoured" - An Outtake

Keeping Babies: 

"I'd Be Honoured"

An Outtake

By Kyizi

Disclaimer: The characters are not mine, but the story they are used in, is

Rating: PG

Summary: Just a short out take from "Keeping Babies" – Lavender's response to what Hermione did for her.

This takes place right after Harry and Ginny leave the common room for their walk

~x~x~x~x~x~

Hermione rolled her eyes as Ron spluttered, not quite sure whether or not she'd be needed to restrain him from running after Harry and Ginny. She smiled down at the child in her arms and couldn't help the pang in her chest as she wished that it were Ron's son, even if it wasn't for real.

"Hermione, can I have a word?" 

Hermione turned to face Lavender and smiled. "Of course." She subconsciously handed her 'son' to Ron, telling herself it was due to the fact that George was preoccupied with his 'niece' and followed the girl to the other end of the common room.

"I…I just wanted to thank you."

Hermione smiled. "It's okay. It was Ginny who worked it out. That…I mean, that…"

"That I can't have children?" Hermione nodded, unsure what to say next and Lavender smiled. "But is was you that did, well, what you did. You could have left me up there, I mean I've never been particularly nice to you."

"No one deserves what happened to you, Lavender, but to have it flaunted in front of the entire senior school was horrible. If I could at least help you save face in front of the Slytherins, then all the better." Hermione smiled, in what she hoped was a reassuring way. "Us Gryffindors stick together, right?"

"Right." Lavender sighed. "But I want you to know…"

"I think I do know, Lavender. What you're trying to say, I mean, I'd never presume to…"

"It's okay, I know." Lavender smiled. "Parvati was the same, she tried to understand, but I don't really think anyone can…not unless they've had to go through it themselves. That's why I hope that no one here will ever understand how I feel."

Hermione tried to swallow the lump in her throat as she listened to Lavender. The girl was trying to keep herself together and, in Hermione's opinion, doing very well. She doubted she'd be able to do the same in Lavender's position. 

"It's an awful thing, Hermione, and what you did…well, I don't think I could appreciate it more if you'd done it for real. Thank you."

Hermione felt a tear making its way down her cheek. "You're welcome." 

"Look, Hermione, I know that we've never really been friends, and maybe we never will be great friends, but I respect you…a lot and what you did…well…" she paused as Neville approached behind them.

Hermione smiled and looked at the little girl he was holding. "She's lovely."

"I know," Lavender smiled, "and…well, we know that this isn't real, but…we would…we wondered if you…if you would be Hermione's Godmother."

"Hermione's?" she asked, not bothering to stop her tears this time.

Lavender nodded. "It seemed appropriate."

"I'd be honoured." She smiled and did something she never thought she would; she hugged Lavender tightly. Pulling back, she wiped her eyes and smiled. "Now, do I get to hold my Goddaughter?" 

They laughed as Neville carefully handed over the child and Hermione looked down at the girl in her arms and smiled. Although the child would have biologically been hers and Neville's, she didn't think of it as such. This was Neville and Lavender's 'child' and her Goddaughter. She chuckled as the girl grabbed onto her finger and squeezed. Real or not, she had the feeling that being a Godmother was going to be a beautiful thing.

~x~x~x~x~x~

Okay, it's sappy and short, but I felt that something needed to be said and I didn't want to include it in the main story as that focuses mainly on Harry and Ginny. Hope you liked it all the same :)

**Disclaimer: **I don't pretend to know what it would feel like to be in Lavender's position, but the thought brings tears to my eyes, and I can only hope that I did it justice.

Feedback would be appreciated.


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